Belinda Lee, Global Vice Chair of Latham’s Antitrust & Competition Practice, represents global companies in high-stakes litigation and investigations, with particular experience defending private damages actions and navigating clients through international jurisdictions.

Belinda represents global companies in antitrust and complex litigation matters pending in courts throughout the United States, and before government regulators in the Americas, Europe, and Asia.

Belinda has extensive experience defending and advising companies in the technology, consumer products, transportation, and manufacturing industries. She has represented these companies in consumer class actions, price-fixing, monopolization, unfair competition, and licensing disputes.

She has defeated class certification several times and regularly guided clients through criminal investigations that close without enforcement action.

Belinda is a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation and serves by appointment on the Law360 Editorial Board for Competition and the Executive Committee of the Antitrust & Unfair Competition Section of the California Lawyers Association. She serves on the Board of Asian Americans Advancing Justice - Asian Law Caucus and is a frequent author and speaker on legal issues relating to expert witnesses, antitrust compliance, and law firm diversity.

As the former Global Chair of Latham’s Training and Career Enhancement Committee, Belinda oversaw the formal and informal training programs for all Latham attorneys, from summer associates to senior partners. Under Belinda’s leadership, Latham’s training programs received numerous awards and accolades, including the highest possible rankings by Vault Law 100 for Informal Training, Mentoring & Sponsorship.

Belinda's representative experience includes advising:

  • Toshiba and its affiliates in numerous class actions, private damages actions, and government investigations in the semiconductor and storage markets:
    • SD Cards: Motions to dismiss granted, voluntary dismissals negotiated of conspiracy and monopolization claims in litigation related to the formation of a patent pool and its licensing practices
    • Optical Disk Drives: Defeated price-fixing claims on summary judgment; defeated motions for class certification by direct customers and consumers; Department of Justice (DOJ) grand jury investigation closed without action; coordinated successful defense of investigations and litigation in Brazil, Canada, Korea, Singapore, and Taiwan
    • DRAM, SRAM, and Flash Memory cases: Defeated motions for class certification by both sets of direct customers and consumers; DOJ grand jury investigations closed without action; negotiated first-ever settlement decision before European Commission
  • StarKist in multidistrict antitrust litigation filed by multiple classes of retailers and consumers alleging anticompetitive conduct in the packaged tuna industry
  • Nitsuko Electronics in class actions alleging price-fixing in the capacitors industry
  • Kamaya Electric and Walsin Technology in class actions alleging price-fixing in the resistors industry
  • HannStar Display in opt-out litigation relating to alleged price-fixing in the LCD industry
  • A major global automobile manufacturer in antitrust litigation alleging participation in a broad-ranging conspiracy to suppress innovation in technological development of cars and light duty trucks
  • A global engineering company in a worldwide cartel investigation into the high voltage power cables industry
  • A diversified manufacturing company on supply, distribution, and price gouging on online retail platforms
  • An online travel and hospitality company in connection with potential alliances and policy changes in wake of COVID-19 pandemic
  • Numerous companies and investment firms in antitrust risk assessments in connection with potential acquisitions in the technology, retail, health care, and consumer products industries
  • Several leading Taiwanese companies in putative class actions alleging price-fixing in the aftermarket sheet metal automotive parts industry
  • A US shipping and transportation company in a global cartel investigation
  • A leading software company as antitrust counsel on matters relating to software bundling and distribution practices
  • A leading automotive parts retailer on unfair competition and data privacy issues

In her pro bono practice, Belinda has handled numerous immigration and refugee cases. Most recently, Belinda obtained class certification and obtained injunctive relief requiring that the US Department of Homeland Security re-review the refugee applications of a class of refugees fleeing persecution in Iran.

Selected Thought Leadership & Community Involvement

  • Panelist, “Honest Broker or Advocate:  Effective Expert Testimony” at ABA Spring Meeting (Podcast – April 2020)
  • Global Legal Insights: Cartels – Taiwan (2020 - 2015)
  • Panelist, “Thinking Critically about Pass-On and Contribution” at ABA Antitrust Section Global Private Litigation Conference – Berlin (June 2019)
  • “SCOTUS: US Courts Not Bound by Foreign Government’s Statement of Its Laws,” Latham & Watkins Client Alert (June 2018)
  • Panelist, “Managing Your Global Antitrust Risks (and Rewards)” at Minority Corporate Counsel Association Global TEC Forum (June 2017)
  • “A Rare Ruling On Antitrust Whistleblower Protections,” Latham & Watkins Article (October 2015)

Belinda has previously served on the editorial board of the ABA’s Antitrust Magazine and Antitrust Source. She is a past-Chair of the Judiciary Committee of the Bar Association of San Francisco. She has also served on the Boards of the Bar Association of San Francisco’s Justice & Diversity Center, the NALP Foundation, the Western Center on Law & Poverty, the Constitutional Rights Foundation, and the California Heritage Museum.

Bar Qualification

  • California

Education

  • JD, Harvard Law School, 1998
    cum laude
  • BSFS, Georgetown University, School of Foreign Service, 1995
    magna cum laude